From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, March 12, 2024
First ship with humanitarian aid for Gaza sets sail from Cyprus port
Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
A boat carrying aid to Gaza sets sail from Larnaca, Cyprus, according to the World Central Kitchen.
WCK, along with the UAE and Cyprus, sent over 200 tons of food on the Open Arms, a ship belonging to a Spanish relief organization of the same name.
The ship will dock along the Gaza coast south of Gaza City at a pier built by WCK.
The organization is responsible for distributing the food to Gazan civilians, an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel.
The shipment marks a pilot run for a sea corridor to supply Gaza, which faces widespread hunger and shortages of essential supplies after nearly five months of war, sparked by Hamas’s devastating October 7 attack on Israel.
WCK-provided aid has set sail for Gaza on the @openarms_fund boat. We dispatched almost 200 tons of food—rice, flour, legumes, canned veggies & proteins. Alongside the @UAEAid & @CyprusMFA, our Relief Team is working to send as many aid boats as possible.#ChefsForThePeople pic.twitter.com/oypXF8WbDH
— World Central Kitchen (@WCKitchen) March 12, 2024
